Gunmen shoot 11 Mexican officers, cartel capo caught

TOLUCA, Mexico -- Eleven policemen were shot to death near Mexico City in a three-day string of drug-gang attacks, prosecutors said Sunday.

Mexico State prosecutor Alberto Bazbaz said 10 suspects believed linked to drug gangs have been arrested in the killings, which mainly occurred on highways and at police checkpoints in the state that loops around Mexico's capital. Some suspects were carrying rifles and grenades at the time of their arrest.

Bazbaz said many suspects were from the neighboring state of Michoacan, a hotbed of drug violence dominated by a gang known as "The Family."

But he said evidence indicates low-level traffickers and criminals, rather than cartel hit squads, were responsible for the attacks. It was not clear if the killings were part of a plan.

Mexico State police commander German Garciamoreno said patrols will be beefed up. The state, like many others across the country, has faced increased drug trafficking and threats against local authorities.

In Tijuana, police found two decapitated bodies wrapped in blankets in a vacant lot early Sunday.

The victims' heads were found nearby in a plastic bag. Cartel hit men in Mexico have been decapitating their rivals, apparently to spread fear and intimidation.

Meanwhile, police reported on Saturday they arrested the reputed leader of the violent Gulf drug cartel for the border city of Reynosa, across from McAllen, Texas.

Federal police said Antonio Galarza was arrested in Monterrey on Friday on suspicion of weapons violations and organized crime.

Reynosa is a major shipping point for cocaine heading to the U.S. market and is dominated by the violent hit squad known as the Zetas.

Also on Saturday, someone strung a series of drug cartel messages on banners along roadsides in the Pacific coast resorts of Acapulco and Zihuatanejo. The messages appeared to have been written by the Zetas and accused officials of protecting a rival cartel.